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I mostly disagree. Sure, I've been frustrated at times when I can't express an idea in 140 characters, but in general, I think the limitation is a benefit. As a

I mostly disagree. Sure, I've been frustrated at times when I can't express an idea in 140 characters, but in general, I think the limitation is a benefit. As a creator, it makes me distill my tweet to the purest essence of what I'm trying to say, and as a consumer, it lets me scan through my timeline quickly. Also, there's nothing stopping people from tweeting an idea and including a link to a blog/gist/whatever where they add more context. And if Twitter does expand the limit, I hope they do it in a way that is essentially a structured version of a link to something else. For example, keep the 140 character limit, but also let people attach a longer note – up to, say, 5000 characters, maybe with simple Markdown formatting. Support it in all official clients and give 3rd-party clients a way to support it too. I have no problem with them expanding the limit as long as I can still scroll through my timeline, seeing 140-max tweets with an option to click on one to see the expanded version, without leaving my Twitter client or loading a whole webpage. A worse option would be to just show the first 140 characters of a longer note. I think there's value in forcing people to be concise, but I also get that there's value in letting people post longer messages and keeping all of that content in-network. This long comment is ~1,360 characters.

newjersey 10y ago
This discussion sorely misses people who subscribe to tweets by SMS. Here are a few from my stream. Please feel free to draw your own conclusions: @MKBHD: From this weekend... #ultimate https://t.co/1bSuvFueee/s/9EwY https://t.co/1bSuvFueee/s/9EwY m.twitter.com/MKBHD -- @woot: $134.99 : Philips BR-30 Hue Starter Pack Bonus Kit https://t.co/X5Thalnvvr/s/JR-S https://t.co/X5Thalnvvr/s/JR-S m.twitter.com/woot -- @maryjofoley: There is a new local OneDrive app for Win 10 for PCs and phones available for download. Not just for Insiders: https://t.co/25ADHBXwdY/s/KNYy https://t.co/25ADHBXwdY/s/KNYy -- @BernieSanders: All over this country, Native Americans have suffered far too much, and for far too long. They deserve a voice. https://t.co/jGqJcNuUOC/s/u4Wc https://t.co/jGqJcNuUOC/s/u4Wc -- 1/2: @maryjofoley: MS broadening Windows Defender Advanced Threat Protection preview: https://t.co/TvE43LrKmZ/s/7ZJh https://t.co/TvE43LrKmZ/s/7ZJh Possibly coming by Q3: https://t.co/e5hilZu https://t.co/e5hilZu 2/2: SoJ/s/-5Fn -- 1/2: @MicrosoftOEM: RT @majornelson: Hey #SanFrancisco: I'll be there this Saturday to help open the new @Razer store. If you are in the area stop by https://t https://t 2/2: .co/InwMnkn6xh/s/IIVm --
- Tenhundfeld 10y ago
  True. I never think about the SMS angle, which of course was the original need for the limitation.
visarga 10y ago
> Sure, I've been frustrated at times when I can't express an idea in 140 characters, but in general, I think the limitation is a benefit. Doesn't that lead to a tendency for low quality content (content that can be consumed in a few seconds, like animated gifs, quotes, etc)? I usually want to read in-depth articles and editorials, or thoughtful comment threads.
- Tenhundfeld 10y ago
  Yeah, fair point. It's nearly impossible to explore a big, high-quality idea on Twitter, but I personally use it mostly as a discovery tool, not a discussion or exploration tool. Based on the people I follow, I get exposed to a lot of news and ideas I might have otherwise missed, but I don't need or want Twitter to be the place where I dig in for more details. I'm fine clicking a link or Googling something if I think it's interesting enough to warrant further investigation. I guess my main concern is that if Twitter tries to be all things to all people it's going to lose its special utility as a discovery engine. In other words, I don't want Twitter to become Facebook or a glorified RSS reader. For me, Twitter is the best source for breaking news and ideas ignored by mainstream media, sprinkled with tidbits from friends I know IRL. In general, I'm happy with what it is now, perhaps with some better controls for blocking and preventing abuse. If they can find a way to keep the concise sharing/discovery aspect while integrating longer content, I'm cool with that – albeit a bit skeptical.

newjersey 10y ago

This discussion sorely misses people who subscribe to tweets by SMS. Here are a few from my stream. Please feel free to draw your own conclusions: @MKBHD: From this weekend... #ultimate https://t.co/1bSuvFueee/s/9EwY https://t.co/1bSuvFueee/s/9EwY m.twitter.com/MKBHD -- @woot: $134.99 : Philips BR-30 Hue Starter Pack Bonus Kit https://t.co/X5Thalnvvr/s/JR-S https://t.co/X5Thalnvvr/s/JR-S m.twitter.com/woot -- @maryjofoley: There is a new local OneDrive app for Win 10 for PCs and phones available for download. Not just for Insiders: https://t.co/25ADHBXwdY/s/KNYy https://t.co/25ADHBXwdY/s/KNYy -- @BernieSanders: All over this country, Native Americans have suffered far too much, and for far too long. They deserve a voice. https://t.co/jGqJcNuUOC/s/u4Wc https://t.co/jGqJcNuUOC/s/u4Wc -- 1/2: @maryjofoley: MS broadening Windows Defender Advanced Threat Protection preview: https://t.co/TvE43LrKmZ/s/7ZJh https://t.co/TvE43LrKmZ/s/7ZJh Possibly coming by Q3: https://t.co/e5hilZu https://t.co/e5hilZu 2/2: SoJ/s/-5Fn -- 1/2: @MicrosoftOEM: RT @majornelson: Hey #SanFrancisco: I'll be there this Saturday to help open the new @Razer store. If you are in the area stop by https://t https://t 2/2: .co/InwMnkn6xh/s/IIVm --

Tenhundfeld 10y ago
True. I never think about the SMS angle, which of course was the original need for the limitation.

visarga 10y ago

> Sure, I've been frustrated at times when I can't express an idea in 140 characters, but in general, I think the limitation is a benefit. Doesn't that lead to a tendency for low quality content (content that can be consumed in a few seconds, like animated gifs, quotes, etc)? I usually want to read in-depth articles and editorials, or thoughtful comment threads.

Tenhundfeld 10y ago
Yeah, fair point. It's nearly impossible to explore a big, high-quality idea on Twitter, but I personally use it mostly as a discovery tool, not a discussion or exploration tool. Based on the people I follow, I get exposed to a lot of news and ideas I might have otherwise missed, but I don't need or want Twitter to be the place where I dig in for more details. I'm fine clicking a link or Googling something if I think it's interesting enough to warrant further investigation. I guess my main concern is that if Twitter tries to be all things to all people it's going to lose its special utility as a discovery engine. In other words, I don't want Twitter to become Facebook or a glorified RSS reader. For me, Twitter is the best source for breaking news and ideas ignored by mainstream media, sprinkled with tidbits from friends I know IRL. In general, I'm happy with what it is now, perhaps with some better controls for blocking and preventing abuse. If they can find a way to keep the concise sharing/discovery aspect while integrating longer content, I'm cool with that – albeit a bit skeptical.